The Lady and the Dragon Knight
by Kyrissean
Summary: Chris chooses an unlikely escort for her trip to Vinay del Zexay.
1. Chapter 1: Watching the Sunrise

_Why aren't there ever any pairings with Futch? Just because he obsessed with his dragon doesn't mean he can't get the…Hmmm. Well anyway, he's sweet and I like him. By the way, I have nothing against any of Chris' knights, (in fact, Percival is one of my favorite characters, especially since he was the last one standing at the final battle with Sarah) but they are so much fun to torture, especially Borus and Percival._

_Let me know what you think. It's not really meant to be Chris/Futch per say. I mean, I'm not going to marry them off to each other or anything. It's just supposed to be a fun story. That's my goal. If you'd like it to go in a certain direction, let me know. _

_ Disclaimer: I absolutely have no claim on Suikoden or any of it's characters. Please review. I love reviewers and especially like giving them virtual snacks.  
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CHAPTER ONE: The Sunrise

The morning started out fairly normally at Budehuc castle. Thomas was pacing about his room. Cecile was drilling her underlings, which was proving to be a rather daunting task. Whenever a particularly frightening enemy appeared near the castle entrance, such as a small, fuzzy, axe-wielding bunny, the dogs cowered behind the Commander of the castle guards, sending her into a frenzy. Peggy was mooning over the "shiny" new hammer the Flame Champion recently brought to her from Duck Village. The Captain of the Zexen Knights was acting the rebel and going against normalcy by leaning on the side of the broken ship that graced the back of Budehuc Castle, relaxing in the quiet of the morning. This may not seem abnormal in and of itself, however, there was the marked absence of at least one of the lady's six major fanboys… I mean…knights.

"Ahhhh," sighed the Captain of the Zexen Knights as she leaned on the side of the broken ship that graced the back of Budehuc's castle.

"Beautiful isn't it," a familiar voice cut into the silence.

The Silver Maiden whipped around and came face to face with the castle's resident dragon knight.

"Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you," Futch smiled reassuringly. "Bright and I often come out here to enjoy the sunrise. Don't we Bright?"

"Kuueee!" the dragon lovingly nuzzled his handler and friend.

Chris visibly relaxed at the sight of the friendly dragon knight. It was her own knights she was attempting to avoid. She didn't understand why they felt the need to travel everywhere with her. It's not as if she needed help taking care of herself. "That's okay. I was just watching the sunrise." Her eyes turned toward the knight's dragon and lit up wonderingly. "Wow. His scales look almost…luminescent in this light."

Futch smiled and drew himself up with pride. "I scrub for him thirty minutes every morning at five and every evening at six. He loves his baths. Right Bright?"

"Kuueee!"

Chris looked puzzled. "I wouldn't think Goro would allow a creature like him in the baths."

"Creature?" Futch puffed up like an angry furrfly. "I'll have you know Bright is in training to be a fighting dragon of the third degree dragon knights! Furthermore…"

"O…okay." Chris took a defensive step back. "I meant no offense."

"Oh. Uhhh…" he suddenly blushed furiously. "Actually, Goro hasn't let him in the baths ever since a…certain incident occurred in which his bath sort of fell apart while Bright coincidently happened to be in it. Now I…uh…bathe him in the lake." He smiled, abashed.

"Oh." Chris shifted uncomfortably. Conversation was not one of her strong suits. She was much more comfortable fighting on the battlefield. She struggled to find something else to say. "It must take a lot of soap to get him clean."

As Futch nodded in affirmation a loud voice cut through their chat. "I know I heard Lady Chris say soap! If it's on the tip of somebody's nose there's going to be hell to pay!"

"Oh no!" Lady Chris groaned, eyes widening, before instinctively diving behind the white dragon.

"What is it?" exclaimed Futch, twisting around to face the threat.

Suddenly the blonde Swordsman of Rage leapt onto the deck and stared at Futch accusingly. "WHERE'S LADY CHRIS? I know I heard her voice around here somewhere!"

Futch conflictingly turned towards Boris. His first instinct was to tell the truth but that would give Chris's position away, and she didn't seem to want to be found by this hot tempered knight. "Uhhh…" He was saved by the entrance of another knight. Fortunately this one didn't seem hostile. In fact he appeared to be smirking in amusement.

"Borus, you'd hear Lady Chris whisper as long as it was somewhere within a thirty mile radius of you," the dark-haired Swordsman of Gale commented sarcastically, walking up behind his comrade.

Borus turned around defensively, his face flaming. "I didn't ask you! Never mind anyway!" He turned around and stalked away.

Futch turned towards the other knight anxiously.

Percival rolled his eyes and smiled. "Don't mind him. He feels his job is to personally babysit the…" His eyes flickered to Bright's feet and he frowned slightly at the sight of a pair of iron boots before looking back at Futch. "Well I'd better go after him before someone gets hurt…namely him. Borus! Mayhap she went for a morning swim in the lake." He smirked mischievously. Borus shrieked in dismay as he ran off in the general direction of the lakeshore.

Futch heaved a sigh of relief.

"Are they gone?" Chris whispered as the Swordsman of Gale trotted over the last step to the main deck.

"Uhhh…yeah."

Chris sighed with relief and stood up, brushing herself off to help gain her composure.

"Those ARE your knights, right?"

"Mmm-hm." Chris turned back to face the lake that made up Budehuc's backyard and closed her eyes.

Futch turned to her, a slight frown creasing his forehead. "Are you alright? They don't… hurt you, do they? I mean…I know they're knights but..."

Chris laughed at the absurdity of the statement. "Oh no. Of course not. It's just…as Captain of the Knights I sometimes find it difficult to relax. When I do have time to myself it seems that at least one of the other five Knights is right there beside me…Borus especially." Chris frowned for a moment as if considering that, but then appeared to lose her train of thought as she shook her head and shrugged.

"Oh. That's too bad. Bright and I watch every sunrise and every sunset together if we can." Futch put his hand on Bright's shoulder. "Actually, we spend every moment of every day together if possible." His eyes grew bright. "Lately I've been entering in some friendly competitions with Franz to see who has the fastest mount. Bright and I usually win, of course, which makes sense considering that aerodynamically…Bright extend a wing please…Thank you… the dragon is made for faster flight than a Mantor, especially at high altitudes. The curvature to the wing is at such an angle that…" Bright nudged him scoldingly. "…Hm. Uhhh….Chris?" Futch let down the dragon wing gently.

"Hmm?" Chris averted her eyes from the ship railing to his own brown ones.

"Kuueee!" Bright gave Futch another nudge.

"Uhhh…right," Futch nodded. "So…basically you're trying to…hide…from your knights. Is that right?"

"Well…no…not really…well, sort of...um...yeah." Chris looked at her feet. "But I just wanted a couple of minutes to myself! Then I'll go right back and…"

Futch put his hands on her shoulders. "Chris. Calm down. You know, if you ever need to get away I'm sure Bright would be happy if you came along with us on a flight. We could…"

"Oh n….I couldn't...I…I'm scared of heights. That is….I get airsick…and…" she paused as Futch's face fell.

"You don't like Bright do you?"

"No. I mean yes. He's a good dragon and…very…pretty and…skilled in flying I'm sure….but… well… um ….maybe….sometime?" Her shoulders sagged.

"Great! This afternoon there should be optimal flying conditions: no rain, little wind, perfect. You'll love flying on Bright. His glide is so smooth. But no armor, okay? It's much better if you are in lighter attire. Maybe we can do a few maneuvers on our ride…"

Her face paled.

"Ah ha. There you are!" A very wet Borus climbed over the rail and flopped down onto the deck with a clang, his whole body sopping wet. His chest was heaving with exhaustion. He attempted to push himself up but fell back to the deck, his arm strength failing him. He lay there for a moment, puffing.

"Borus? What are you doing? How did you climb the side of the ship! And how did you swim here in full plate armor?"

"Well….someone suggested that you might be swimming and…uh…well…it's not important anyway. What do you think YOU'RE doing?" he turned to Futch, who was completely oblivious to the newcomer's arrival and was now talking about Bright's flying patterns and the variety of maneuvers he could perform at various altitudes.

"It appears he's talking about the triple spins and….really? That's fascinating…quadruple twists that Bright is apparently capable of at…one thousand feet," Percival commented, smiling in amusement.

Borus paused for a moment then lifted himself off the deck and began shouting at Futch for "hiding" Lady Chris from the rest of the castle.

Chris turned a lovely shade of light green at the mention of the twists and hurried away to the lower levels. Percival watched her go, then sighed and grabbed Borus's arm as he began to shout about properly addressing a lady and Futch turned onto the subject of proper foot position on an air-bound dragon. "Come on Borus," Percival tugged ineffectively on the cold steel. "Borus! Lady Chris is…" he sighed and stared at the chaos for a moment. "No wonder she's hiding from us," he muttered as he walked away from the chattering men.


	2. Chapter 2: First Flight

_Thanks for the reviews! I really wasn't sure if I wanted to continue the fic but as most of you had a positive reaction to the fic, here is chapter 2. I am kind of unsure how to continue the story so if any of you have ideas please let me know. _

_Disclaimer: I don't own Suikoden...so there.  
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_CHAPTER 2: The First Flight_

"Hey Chris," a familiar voice called.

"That's LADY Chris to you!" Borus shouted from the fencepost.

Chris stopped her white mare mid-drill and looked towards the sound of the voice. "Oh. Futch," she smiled anxiously. "Uhhh…"

"You didn't forget your promise did you?" Futch's brow furrowed with worry.

"P..PROMISE!" Borus' face turned red.

"O..of course not," stuttered Lady Chris. "I suppose flying conditions are still optimal…" she trailed off hoping for a negative response.

"Oh, it's a beautiful morning for flying!" Futch gushed. "Couldn't possibly be any better! Come on. Sharon's taking Bright for a warm-up flight now," he pointed to the low flying dragon and rider coming in their general direction, "and you're in perfect flying attire!"

At the moment the beautiful lady was in a green shirt with brown breeches and black riding boots.

"What's going on?" Borus shouted as Futch began signaling for the dragon to land and Lady Chris dismounted, handing her reins to the nearest stableboy.

"Borus," said an exasperated Chris. "I promised Futch a dragon ride."

"B..but…" Borus sputtered.

Chris interrupted him a bit irritably. "I did promise and what kind of a knight breaks promises?"

"B…but," Borus stuttered desperately.

At this point Futch's signaling turned to frantic hand gestures as the headstrong Sharon was refusing to let the dragon land. In fact, she waved cheerfully back at Futch, pretending to not understand his hand signals.

"I knew I should've waited to attach the reins," he mumbled.

Percival jerked in surprise. "You use reins to control your dragon?"

"Futch smiled indulgently. "No. Not after initial training anyway..." he sighed. "But Sharon's just my apprentice, and Dragon Knight Law states that apprentices must use a saddle and reins if they are alone on a dragon…Actually she really shouldn't be alone a dragon." His facial features tensed up.

Finally Bright circled around and came to a smooth stop directly in front of Futch.

"Thanks for finally gracing us with your presence," Futch berated the appentice.

Sharon affected an innocent expression. "What do you mean?"

"Don't play innocent with me, young lady! You know I was signaling for Bright to land!"

"Oh." Sharon scratched the back of her head uncomfortably. "I guess he didn't see you."

"Sharon! It's not the dragon's responsibility to…"

"Well, nice seeing you all. Later Futch!" She exclaimed before running towards the castle.

Futch sighed again. "That girl does try one's patience." Then his expression brightened "Come on Chris." Futch gave her a leg up into the stirrups. "Don't worry," he said as he saw her face pale. "This is his cross country saddle. It's nearly impossible to fall out of it."

"F…Fall out!" stuttered Borus. "Lady Chris!"

Percival walked over, torn between concern for his captain and amusement at his friend's current state of mind. "Lady Chris…Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"Of course I'm sure!" she snarled, more because of the anxiety over the impending dragon ride than anger at her knights.

The Knights stared at her in shock, taking the insult personally.

Futch smoothly mounted up behind the Captain of the Knights. "Just hang on to the grips on either side of you. "I'll keep his bridle on since this is your first time, but I'll hang on to the reins for now…" Futch's arms were now surrounding Lady Chris sending Borus into convulsions. Percival just blinked repeatedly in shock and confusion at the proximity of the dragon knight and his captain.

"We'll do a three-step takeoff. Okay?" said Futch. "We won't go far today. In fact, they'll probably still be able to see us at all times."

"B…but we can see pretty far up there!" Borus interjected. "How about you do a quick little circle around the stable and then land."

Futch gazed at the blond-haired knight quizzically. "Is he making a joke?"

"I…don't know." Chris stuttered nervously, her knuckles turning white as she gripped the handles on the saddle.

Borus' face fell.

Futch shrugged. "Ready? We'll take off on the count of three…One, two, three!"

The Knight's eyes never left their captain as the dragon spread his wings and effortlessly left the safety of the ground, his feet folding up beneath him like a passenger plane.

"Don't close your eyes!" Futch exclaimed, leaning towards her.

Chris slowly opened her eyes and looked down, causing her face to turn the color of the lake water they were flying over.

"The trick is to feel yourself moving with the saddle," Futch lectured, as if the knight was a student. Chris felt her stomach roll and leaned back against Futch for extra support.

"Ahhh. None of that now. I didn't bring any air sickness bags," he tried to joke.

Chris' head lolled down in response.

"Bright?" he questioned, desperately.

The white dragon obligingly lowered his altitude until he was almost touching the lake. He playfully splashed some of the cool water onto his two passengers before ascending back into the sky. Chris sputtered, her sickness momentarily forgotten as the cool water drenched her.

"H..Hey!" she sputtered.

"Ha, ha," laughed Futch. "Now just relax…Pretend you are riding a horse."

"But a fall from a horse wouldn't be as…fatal as a fall from a dragon," Chris returned.

Futch gasped. "Bright would never let you fall!"

Chris sighed, her hands still clenched on the grips.

"Don't you see?" Futch continued, hoping that talking would relieve some of the lady's tension. "The motion to the saddle is pretty much the same as that of a horse except much smoother and there's no rocking back motion."

"So it's really not the same as…"

"Close your eyes for a second and try to concentrate on that motion," Futch reverted back to his teaching voice.

Chris obliging closed her cool grey eyes and attempted to rock back and forth with the saddle.

"That's it," Futch tried to bolster the knight's confidence, as both Chris and he began moving in harmony with the saddle.

Chris opened her eyes and smiled. "This is…kind of fun."

Just then Roland and Leo walked up to their two comrades still on the ground, their eyes locked on the dragon. "Hey Percival. Borus," Leo greeted them. When he got no response he paused at glanced at Roland who shrugged. "Don't look at me. I will never understand humans."

Leo moved in front of his teammates. "Guys? Ummm…What are you looking at?"

Percival pointed at the dragon mutely.

"Yeeesss," Leo said slowly. "Futch often takes Bright out for afternoon flights."

"Chris is with him," Percival said, his voice devoid of emotion.

Roland looked at him. "Percival. You know your human jokes fail to amuse me. This one is particularly…"

"True," Borus finished, his eyes blank.

Both knight's eyes widened in horror as they looked first at Borus, then at the dragon in the sky.

Leo recovered first. "How could you let this happen!" he shouted, putting a hand on his axe.

Percival sighed. "It's not as if we had much choice in the matter."

_Back in the sky_

"You know, I think I could get used to this," Chris allowed herself a small smile as Bright made a small turn towards the castle.

Futch smiled widely. "Now for something more difficult. Bright. Circle please."

"What?" Chris didn't get the chance to say anything else as Bright obligingly made a full frontal circle. Chris' hands turned white on the handles as she prayed to the Goddess for protection. Meanwhile, Percival stared at the scene dully while Borus, quivering with rage, fell to the ground. Leo's mouth dropped open and even Roland's eyes widened in a rare show of emotion.

"Bright is one of the most maneuverable…" Futch began, but then the remains of what his passenger had for breakfast came up and caught on the sleeve of Futch's shirt. Futch looked at it in dismay. "I think it's time to land."

After Bright made his usual smooth landing, Futch bounded off and held up a hand for Chris. She ignored it and attempted to dismount herself. Only, her legs were unstable from the flight and resulting air sickness causing her to collapse into Futch.

"I've got her!" Borus "gallantly" moved in to support Lady Chris.

Sharon enthusiastically bounded over to the dragon knight, hoping for a chance at the cool down flight. "Hey Futch! How was the f…Oh! That's disgusting." She wrinkled her nose in distaste at Futch's dirty sleeve.

"Sharon!" Futch scolded his charge for her tactlessness.

Chris groaned in embarrassment. "Sorry Futch. I really didn't mean to…"

"It's fine." Futch replied, as he and Bright made their way to the ship and a change of clothes.

"Lady Chris! Are you okay? You must NEVER do that again! That was danger…" Leo broke off as he noted her pitiful expression.

Borus drew his sword, his eyes turning into narrow slits. "What's the matter! Did he do something to you!"

Chris buried her head in her hands. "I threw up on his shirt."

That snapped Percival out of his "my captain's going on a dragon ride with another eligible bachelor" shock and brought a smirk to his face. Chris quickly glanced back at him and he smoothed his expression, assuming an innocent look.

Borus sheathed his sword with a satisfied smile. "Serves him right. What an indecent, insufferable…"

"Borus!" Chris interjected. "Futch is not indecent."

Borus paled at his captain's statement as Leo and Roland swarmed around her, checking her over and asking if she was okay. Percival crossed his arms, attempting an attitude of nonchalance.

Chris looked remorsefully back towards the direction Futch and Bright disappeared in, sighed and began walking dejectedly back to the castle.

"Wait! Lady Chris. You're not fit to…" Borus began.

"Oh. Stop fooling around Borus," she reprimanded him.

His face fell and he collapsed, sobbing.

Percival came over and soothingly patted him on the back, still staring at the disappearing Lady Chris.

Just then Salome walked over to the team of knights. "Hey guys! I just walked by Lady Chris and she didn't seem to recognize me. Her expression suggested that she was upset about something. What happened?"

The knights simultaneously looked at their strategist and Borus's sobs, which had stopped for a moment, began with renewed intensity.


	3. Chapter 3: The Aftermath

_Just to warn you all, Futch does not make an appearance in this chapter. Sorry. I had this chapter started before I began posting the story. I promise he'll be back next chapter. Thanks for all the positive reviews! I'm kind of surprised the story is getting such positive feedback, to tell you the truth. _

_Oh yeah, if there are grammatical errors in Percy and Borus' speech, they're probably intended. I apologize if I have the speech pattern of a drunk person wrong. I've not been around many. That said, enjoy the chapter!  
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_Disclaimer: Suikoden isn't mine.  
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_Chapter Three: The Aftermath_

After the flight, Lady Chris retreated to her room with the excuse of needing to review Salome's battle tactics. Her knights attempted to convince her to come out for lunch and, later on, supper but their captain responded with the excuse that she was still feeling queasy from the flight earlier. She made it crystal clear to them all that she wanted to be left alone. The sun was setting by the time Salome finally developed a tactic to get someone inside the room to make certain Chris was all right.

Tap. Tap. "Lady Chris?" came a timid voice behind the door to her room.

"Yes?" the knight tiredly answered.

The door cracked open to the Lady sitting on her bed reading The Noble Knight: Life of Sacrifice, by Camus and Miklotov. "May I come in?"

Lady Chris almost smiled at the friendly nurse. "Of course, Mio. I was just reading a little history. What do you need?"

"Actually, I'm here for you. Salome said that you were feeling ill." The nurse sat on the bed next to Chris and opened her black bag, getting out her stethoscope.

Chris looked at the object as if it were about to bite her. "Oh. He worries too much. It's just a little air sickness."

"Air sickness would've gone away by now. He said you didn't eat your lunch or dinner." Mio looked concerned.

Chris waved the nurse off. "My stomach is just upset. I'll be fine."

Mio looked at her doubtfully.

Chris sighed. "I wish everyone would stop treating me like an invalid! I am fully capable of taking care of myself!" Embarrassed at her outburst, Chris's cheeks turned a marvelous shade of red.

Mio looked startled but moved to hug the Silver Maiden.

Chris flinched away from the embrace. "I just need a little time alone!"

"I think you've spent enough time alone, dear," suggested Mio gently.

Chris flushed. "I just feel so bad!" she blurted. "I completely ruined his shirt!" The knight looked at her bed sheets in shame.

Chris looked up, astonished, as Mio laughed. "I don't think you need to worry about that."

"But I-"

"I think what you're really concerned about is that you showed vulnerability this morning," Mio remarked while checking the knight's pulse.

"B…but I…"

Mio ignored her and continued on. "After all, you're a knight of Zexen and they're not allowed to show weakness."

Chris gaped at the nurse's frankness.

Mio continued on, oblivious to the knight's reaction. "If you really feel bad about it, you could try to make it up to him…you know…invite him to go riding."

Chris turned green.

"Horse riding," Mio put in quickly as she wound up her stethoscope.

Chris looked at the nurse blankly.

Mio sighed in slight exasperation. "You know, sometimes I don't think you realize you're a woman."

Chris looked down.

"And sometimes I know you don't realize it." Mio patted her hand before getting up and walking towards the door. "Oh, I almost forgot," the nurse said as she turned back. "You may want to check on your knights in a bit. They may need some extra help getting to their rooms tonight."

Chris blinked as the nurse finally left her sanctuary. She heaved a sigh before reopening her book.

_Meanwhile_

"Ohhhhhh, I onch knew a maaiiiden wit' long shilverrrr hairrrrr, and sheee shnapped my heart like a twiiiiiiig…." sang the very drunk, very off-key Percival and Borus, one arm companionably around each other's shoulders swaying in time with the beat.

The two mercenary groups, who'd have to swallow a can of paint thinner to get drunk, looked at the knights with expressions of contempt.

"Pathetic." Joker shook his head. "They've only had half a dozen rounds."

Ace sniggered in reply.

"You know, Pershy. You really are a good guy. A…good…guy." Borus slurred at Percival, talking very slowly and nodding his head after each word.

"As'r you, my friend. As...are...you. Bartender! 'nother round!"

"Are you sure you want…"Anne began.

"When we shtop sinin' about maidensh we'll shtop ord'ring rouns'." Percival interrupted.

"So they'll either be dead or unconscious," Joker snickered as Anne hesitantly passed another round to the knights.

"Who wants to take bets?" Ace shouted to no one in particular.

"Guys…" Queen raised a tired eyebrow as Ace and Joker grinned at her. "Shut up."

The two mercenaries sullenly looked down into their half empty glasses to the snickering of the other nearby mercenary group.

"She's got you two whipped!" Duke shouted, his team grinning with their captain.

"Hey Ace!" Elaine shouted. "Maybe we should go out sometime!"

Ace looked at the woman hopefully. "Really?"

"On second thought, I don't think your mistress would allow it." She started laughing with her team.

"Yeah, well…" Ace trailed off, not able to come up with a good comeback and instead took a long swig of his beer.

"Nice comeback Ace," Joker sneered.

"And you could do better!" Ace retorted, getting out of his chair. "I haven't seen any ladies even pretending to want to go out with you lately!"

Joker sneered as he got in Ace's face. "At least I don't go around making a fool of myself around every pair of pretty eyes!"

"Uhhh, guys?" Queen caught their attention.

"What?" they shouted, simultaneously.

She pointed towards the knights. "They're the entertainment for the night. Remember?"

The mercenaries scowled at each other for a moment before once again taking their seats.

"Why I got stuck with idiots like this," Queen mumbled.

"Ish all that dragon fellers fault," Borus started again. "If 'e hadn't taken Lady Chrish on that dragon, she would'ne gotten sick."

Percival sighed and stared broodingly into his glass.

Borus thumped his mug down angrily. "'e impugned 'er honor. I challench 'im to a duel!" With that declaration, he tried to stand up but couldn't seem to get his legs under him and instead had to rely on Percival to pull him back into his chair. Unfortunately, the equally drunk Percival overcompensated and tugged his friend a little too hard. As a result, Borus practically fell on the knight and they both ended up in a heap on the floor, much to the mercenaries' amusement.

"Here," Anne sighed. "Let me help you up."

The boys grunted as the bartender helped them both back to their seats. "Will someone please get them out of here?" she beseeched the mercenaries, who were suddenly very interested in their drinks.

"Jus' one more toast Anne," Percival slurred. "T' r friendship." He held his glass in Borus' direction.

"Here, here." Borus returned as their glasses clanged together. They both emptied the mugs in one deft swig and promptly passed out, causing the mercenaries to shake their heads in shame.

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Please review! 


	4. Chapter 4: The Escort

_Sorry you guys had to wait so long. It's been really hard for me to work on this story unless I'm in the mood for it. I usually end up working on my other story when I'm not doing homework. And now I've Suikoden V to occupy my time...Thanks for the ideas for this chapter. If you guys have anything you want to see in later chapters, I would suggest letting me know, or you're going to have to wait a very long time for me to come up with something. That would not be good. Anyway, I did manage to write a reasonably long chapter for your enjoyment._

_Disclaimer: I don't own Suikoden or Nash or Futch or Chris etc, etc. The storyline is mine though.

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Chapter 3: The Escort _

It was another day as usual at Budehuc castle. The grass was green, the birds were singing, the shimmering blue water of the lake was rippling in the breeze, and Lady Chris was stuck in her room going through paperwork.

"Honestly!" She glanced at Louis who was standing by her side. "Some of these reports are so trivial! I can see why a request for five hundred pairs of new boots for the infantry needs to be approved, but two hundred emblems for horse saddles!" She sighed in exasperation. "That money would be put to better use buying food supplies or reimbursing families for their losses."

Louis gazed at the Silver Maiden sympathetically.

"I don't see why Salome couldn't go to the council meeting this afternoon. He's much better at dealing with those pompous council members."

"M'lady! You shouldn't say such things!" Louis' face turned bright red at his outburst and he fixed his eyes on the floor. "I don't want anything to happen to you," he mumbled.

Chris let out an icy sigh as she stared at the quill pen in her hand. "Don't worry, Louis. I'm the Silver Maiden," she mocked. "They're not going to come after me."

"Just the same, m'lady."

Chris smiled a little at the squire's concern. "Thank you, Louis."

Louis smiled shyly in return. "Lady Chris. Have you given a thought to your escort for the afternoon? You know how dangerous the plains have become."

"Ah yes." Chris smiled, more sincerely this time. "I know who I'm going to ask." She selected a clean piece of parchment from her stack and dipped her pen in fresh ink.

"Who should I tell m'lady? Borus or Percival?"

"Neither," her tone hardened. "They were out late drinking last night. I wouldn't trust them to be proper guards in their condition."

"You're punishing them!" Louis' eyes widened. He idolized all of the other mighty knights of Zexen, not as much as Lady Chris, of course.

Chris' eyes were stone. "I warned them not to drink so heavily or so late. If they think they are above obeying my orders they are mistaken. Rules must be enforced, no matter the office of the offender. You know that, Louis."

"Yes m'lady." Louis' voice looked at the floor, properly chastised.

"There!" Chris put the pen down and examined the letter. "Read this for me and let me know if it sounds okay?"

"It would be an honor," the page stuttered, glad to be on her good side, once again.

_Sir Futch,_

_I would be most obliged if you would agree to be my escort to Vinay Del Zexay this 12:00 noon. As the plains have become populated with ever more dangerous creatures, it has become treacherous to travel alone. I look forward to your reply._

_Lady Chris_

"It's a little abrupt m'lady," Louis commented. "And rather formal as well."

"Well, it will have to do," she sighed again. "I'm really no good at this sort of thing."

Louis looked puzzled. "Writing letters, m'lady? But you do this all the time!"

Chris smiled softly as she folded the letter and pressed the Lightfellow house's seal into it. "Will you deliver this for me, Louis?"

"Of course, m'lady!" The boy paused, uncertainly. "If I may ask, m'lady, why did you decide on Sir Futch?"

Chris looked at Louis, puzzled. "I think Futch is a more than qualified escort."

"T…That's not what I meant, Lady Chris. U…Ummm. It's just that it's very dangerous on the plains and…"

Chris smiled warmly. "I think I understand."

"You do?" Louis gasped, hopefully.

"You want to come along too."

"N…no m'lady. I mean, yes m'lady, I would be honored to attend you b…but,"

"What's the problem, Louis?"

Louis shuffled his feet. "Sir Futch rides a dragon m'lady."

"I'm not going to ask him to fly me there!" Chris shuddered.

"N…no m'lady. But shouldn't an escort be on the ground, so as to ride as close to you as possible? What if he doesn't see…"

Chris chuckled. "Futch won't be riding his dragon."

"H…he won't!"

"Certainly not. He's traveling on horseback."

Louis gaped at his Lady Captain. "Can Futch ride a horse?"

Lady Chris looked out her window thoughtfully. "I think he'll manage. Our warhorses are highly trained, after all…"

Louis looked less than convinced. "If you say so, m'lady."

"Perhaps you can ask Percival to pick one of the quieter horses for Futch to ride."

Louis nodded in acquiescence and without further protest, grabbed the letter and scurried to the hallway, knocking right into Borus. He, along with the rest of the knights, was conveniently waiting directly outside Lady Chris' door. As Percival helped Louis back to his feet, Salome, Roland and Leo casually looked in another direction.

"What do you have there, Louis?" Percival smirked as he snatched for the letter.

"N…nothing." The boy stammered, easily evading the knight.

"Are you sure?" Percival put on a concerned air. "You look a little troubled. Just what's in that letter anyway?"

"You know you can trust us, Louis," Leo added, hiding a smile.

Roland sniffed. "Oh. Leave the boy alone. He probably hasn't even seen the letter."

"Actually, Chris asked me to read it for her before it was sealed." Louis grinned at the privilege.

"She what?" Borus' face turned red in indignation. "How…why would she…"

"And I suppose there's no way you're going to tell us what's in that letter hmmm?" Percival circled around the boy, who watched him suspiciously.

"W…well," Louis looked at the ground, pretending uncertainty. It wasn't very often that he was one up on the guys, so to speak. "It's been really nice talking to you guys, but I really should be getting this delivered." He tried moving forward as he spoke but was blocked by the wall of knights.

"Not so fast Louis," Percival reached for the letter again, but Louis was prepared for it and protectively crouched over it.

"Come on Percival," Salome broke in and put a hand on Louis' shoulder. "The lad's obviously too smart for your tricks." With that, he deftly grabbed the letter out of Louis' hand.

"Hey!" Louis shouted as he jumped for the letter. "No fair! Give that back!"

"Do you think we can reseal it, so it doesn't look like it's been tampered with?" Leo questioned anxiously.

"Very impressive, boys," a mocking voice drifted to the group. "I didn't realize the Zexen knights had stooped to taking advantage of little boys." Nash winked at Louis, who immediately averted his eyes.

"You keep your mouth shut, heathen," Borus snarled, one hand on his sword.

"I mean, honestly. Five against one?" He walked arrogantly over to the group of knights. "That's hardly fair odds."

Borus growled as he unsheathed his sword. Leo put a warning hand on his friend's wrist, causing Borus to reluctantly stand down.

"Nash," Percival grinned at the Harmonian spy. "What a pleasant surprise. I suppose you expect us to believe that you, of all people, have no interest in this letter."

The spy snorted in contempt. "I have my own sources of information."

"Yeah. We know how good those are," Roland sneered coldly at the spy.

"I see," Percival responded, unshaken. "So you already know its contents."

Nash shrugged. "Maybe…and then again maybe not. I hear so much throughout the day. I can't be expected to remember everything." He smirked smugly.

"Worthless scum!" Borus snarled.

"Jealous, Sir Borus?" Nash continued softly.

"You must be joking," Roland interjected with his usual stoic demeanor. "Why would any of us be jealous of a despicable serpent such as yourself?"

The knights all turned to stare at Roland in astonishment. Even Nash's eyes widened at the elf's insult. It was well known how reluctant Roland generally was to even speak. "I think I've heard enough," Nash turned angry eyes on the group. "If you'll excuse me, _gentlemen_, I'll leave you to your interrogation of the _boy_."

"Why you…" Borus grunted as he tripped over Percival's foot and landed flat on his face.

"Not now Borus." The Swordsman of Gale gave his friend a hand up. "We have other business to attend to." He glanced at the letter.

"I don't know, Percival," Salome shifted uncomfortably.

Percival sighed. "Our job is to protect Lady Chris, right Salome?"

Salome, immediately seeing where this was going, nodded unhappily.

"What if there's something in that letter that undermines her safety?" Percival continued.

Leo's eyes turned thoughtful as he tapped his axe in his hand.

"I don't think Lady Chris would do anything purposefully dangerous." Roland raised an eyebrow at Percival.

"You mean like run off with a womanizer she doesn't know is a Harmonian spy?"

Borus and Leo's hands turned white at they gripped their respective weapons. Roland nonchalantly looked away, his eyes taking on a disturbed hue.

Louis shrugged. "She didn't say it was a secret…"

Salome's focus returned to the squire. "So you'll tell us what she wrote?"

"I don't know if I should," Louis put on an innocent expression. "What if I get in trouble?"

"We won't tell if you won't," Percival assured the boy.

Salome examined the letter. "I think I could reseal this with enough accuracy to make it look original."

Borus looked over Salome's shoulder. "She doesn't even have an address on it. Are you sure it isn't a secret message?"

"It's not a secret to me," Louis grinned.

"I supposed you won't even tell us who it's addressed to?" Percival put on a puppy-dog like expression.

"I suppose I _could_ tell you that." Louis put on his most winning smile at the knight.

The knight's all turned to Louis expectantly.

"It's to Sir Futch," he revealed quickly.

"What?" Borus growled. The other knights froze in momentary astonishment, giving Louis the opportunity he needed to steal the letter back.

"By the way, Sir Percival. She asked for you to pick one of the quieter horses for him to ride this afternoon," Louis grinned as he rushed away.

"Little scamp," Leo snorted.

"I think you've been teaching him a little too effectively Percival," Salome smiled wryly at the other knight.

Percival shrugged helplessly. "What can I say? He's a fast learner."

"But what does this mean?" Borus shouted.

Salome turned to the other knight. "It means she's going to the council meeting in Vinay del Zexay this afternoon, as I advised her to, and is requesting Sir Futch as her escort. You know it's dangerous traveling the plains alone, especially now."

"So you _advised_ her to take that scoundrel with her?" Borus snarled.

"As a matter of fact, I did not…although I wouldn't refer to Sir Futch as a scoundrel." Salome hid a smile. "If you will excuse me, I have other business to attend to now." Borus watched the strategist as he calmly exited the ship.

"Perhaps if you two hadn't drank the night away, she would've asked one of you to escort her to the capital," Roland arrogantly turned heel and also wandered away.

Leo turned to Borus. "Borus. Why don't you and I make a stop at the bar?"

"A little early for that, don't you think Leo?" Borus scowled. "How about a training session instead?"

Leo nodded. "Care to join us Percival?"

But the other man wasn't listening to his comrades at the moment. "A quieter horse, huh?" Percival fingered his chin as he walked away from the puzzled knights.

_That afternoon_

"It's been ages since I've ridden a horse," Futch mumbled as he put his riding gloves on. He wouldn't _exactly_ say he was nervous about the afternoon. He was a capable fighter, after all. Becoming a third degree dragon knight was no small task. Still…he hadn't been expecting Lady Chris to send for _him_ as her escort, what with all those young knights obviously vying for her favor. He tried not to think about think about it as he prepared himself for the afternoon ride.

"Are you sure you remember how?" Sharon raised a doubtful eyebrow. "You wouldn't want to embarrass the yourself by falling off in front of the Silver Maiden…or her five lackeys."

"Sharon!" Futch scolded. "I think I can manage. It's not that much different from riding a dragon."

"So you told Lady Chris," Sharon sniffed.

Futch paused, staring at the apprentice. "I don't even want to know how you found that out.

Sharon smiled, haughtily. "Kinda hard for people to keep a secret around here."

"Well, I'm sure you don't spread any rumors, Sharon." The dragon knight took on a lecturing tone, causing Sharon to roll her eyes.

Futch raised an eyebrow at her, causing her to put on her most innocent expression, which, for Sharon, wasn't really all that innocent. "Of course not Futch. I would never disgrace the dragon knights."

"Hmph. I should hope not." Futch leaned down to fasten his boots. "It's not that difficult to ride a horse," he nervously reverted back to the previous subject, "although I think Humphrey usually managed to choose very broke ones for me to ride back when we were journeying."

Sharon groaned. "Not another Humphrey story."

Futch smiled in reminiscence as he began his walk to the stables. "Those were good times."

"Yeah, yeah," Sharon scoffed. "I must've heard 'The Adventures of Futch and Humphrey' a million times already."

Futch continued on, a glazed look in his eyes as he remembered days past.

"Hey Futch?" Sharon began, a slightly confused look on her face.

"Hmmm?" Futch reluctantly pulled himself out of his memories.

"Why would you want to ride a broken horse? That sounds pretty stupid to me," she finished with a rather contemptuous look on her face.

Futch chuckled. "Broke means the horse has been trained for a rider. The more broke a horse is, the more training and experience it's had."

"Oh." Sharon paused. "It still sounds pretty stupid to me."

"Look!" Futch paused. "Lady Chris already has the horses ready at the front gate." He broke into a jog, afraid he had held the Captain up too long. That was just great. The trip hadn't even started yet and he was potentially off on the wrong foot. "Hello Chris!" he waved a greeting.

Borus sputtered at his lack of using a title. Salome reflexively put a hand on his arm, and the other knight held his tongue.

"Hello Futch." Chris smile caused him to heave a relieved sigh. "The horses are tacked up and ready to go if you are. We'll have to keep a brisk pace to reach the meeting on time."

"Of course. Sorry to hold you up." Futch started towards the leggy chestnut stallion beside Chris' white mare. Percival was expertly holding the stallion's head as the animal tried to pace from side to side.

Chris waved his comment off. "Nonsense. You're right on time."

"That one's mine?" he hesitated, as the horse tossed his head.

"Don't worry," Chris gave him a reassuring smile. "I had Percival pick a quieter horse for you."

Futch warily eyed the grinning knight. "Somehow that doesn't comfort me."

"Don't worry, Futch. Halo here is as quiet as a baby." The knights snickered. Even Chris eyed the horse suspiciously as he began to act up again.

"Percival. Are you sure…"

"Lady Chris. Don't you trust me?" Percival put on his best wounded expression.

"Of course, but…"

"Don't worry." Percival gave the horse a pat. "His ground manners leave something to be desired, but he's gentle as a lamb when there's a rider on his back."

"If you say so." Chris still eyed the horse dubiously.

Sharon grinned, wanting to see some action. "Come on Futch. Go make friends with him!" She shoved the dragon knight at the horse's head.

Futch glared at his apprentice before slowly approaching the horse, speaking softly. He hoped the technique would work as well with this wild eyed animal as it did with Bright. He was glad he had instructed the dragon to stay back until they were into the plains. Then the dragon would join them, providing extra protection from the sky. Now, though, Futch had his hands full just trying to approach his ride for the afternoon. This did not bode well. "Easy fellow. That's a good lad." He carefully reached to pat the horse's nose. The moody stallion responded by trying to taking a chunk out of Futch's arm. Futch deftly dodged the animal as he kicked out to the side.

"That worked well," Sharon giggled from the sidelines.

"I'm sure he'll be fine once were out on the trail," Chris commented, glaring pointedly at Percival, who blinked innocently.

"Go on Futch. I'll hold him while you get a leg up into the saddle."

"Thanks," Futch swiftly mounted the stallion, who gave a little buck and sidestep in response. "His name's Halo?" Futch asked as he struggled to control his mount.

"Yep," Percival grinned. "Quite appropriate, really." The knight smoothly stepped out of the way as Halo tried lunging forward.

"If you don't make it back, can I have Bright?" Sharon shouted as Chris and Futch trotted out of the castle grounds, Percival waving cheerfully behind them.

Futch ignored the girl as he attempted to reign in the stallion. "Quiet as a baby, huh?" Futch remarked at the stallion rammed into Chris' mare. "Sorry," he gave her an apologetic lance as the mare's ears went warningly back.

"Quiet indeed," She snarled. "When I get back to the castle…"

Futch chuckled. "I wouldn't worry about it too much. It's understandable, considering."

"Considering what?" Chris looked genuinely confused.

"Uh…Never mind," his face turned slightly pink as finally got the stallion under some semblance of control.

Chris looked away, not quite sure what she did wrong. Futch stared at his saddle.

"Nice day for a ride," Chris offered, in an attempt to break the uncomfortable pause.

"Yep." Futch continued to stare at his reins. Just then a white figure appeared in the sky behind them. Chris' mare, used to the accompaniment of the dragon, didn't flinch, but Futch's stallion went berserk, rearing before racing off towards the forest. Futch gasped, unprepared for the bolt, and concentrated on using his limited horsemanship skill just to stay on the frantic animal.

"Futch!" Chris skillfully urged her mare after the runaway stallion. Futch finally recovered enough to attempt to stop the horse, jerking on the reins, but to no avail. The animal had the bit in his teeth, not to mention 1,200 lbs on his side.

Futch ducked as a branch swept over his head, trying not to panic. "Easy boy!" The stallion paid his passenger no heed as he continued his headlong gallop through the forest. Futch frantically tried to regain control of the stallion as he swerved back and forth between the trees. Futch tried not to imagine what would happen if the animal tossed him off at this speed. Unfortunately, as most of his focus was on the horse, he didn't see the low-hanging tree branch directly in his path. He only had time to gasp as his forehead connected with the heavy branch. The last thing he remembered was the ground rushing up to him before his world went dark.

* * *

_Thanks for reading! Please review!_  



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